President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has back-tracked her 2005 campaign promises of one term when she Monday announced that she will contest the 2011 presidential election as a "formidable candidate".

"I will be a candidate. I will be a formidable candidate in the 2011 elections," President Sirleaf stated categorically, when she delivered her 5th state of the nation address to the National Legislature, amidst thunderous applauses from a crowd of supporters, predominantly partisans of the ruling Unity Party.

In 2005 the UP flag bearer promised that when elected to the presidency, she would serve for one term and turns the country over to a successor.

However, the Liberian leader has received numerous petitions across the country from young and old people, several counties as well as well as the National Traditional Council of Liberia.

They have applauded her "sound leadership" and begged her to seek a second term to continue with her development initiatives, backed by the international community.

President Sirleaf--recommended by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's final report to face a 30-year sanction from holding public office--had not responded to the many petitions until yesterday.

She had told the public that she would respond to the petitions in 2010, a year she had described "a year of politics". She had described past years as years to focus on "development of the country".

The President said... to bring to an end all speculations, that I now announce to you and to the thousands of supporters in radio land and abroad that I will be a candidate, a formidable candidate, in the 2011 elections. Let us travel the rest of this road together knowing that the God who brought us this far will not leave us."

Many politiciansincluding Cllr. Winston Tubman, a 2005 defeated presidential candidate of the Liberia National Union (LINU) that has formed collaboration with the Congress For Democratic Change and Liberty Partyhad earlier criticized attempts by President Sirleaf to quash her campaign promise.

Cllr. Tubman in particular has called on President Sirleaf not to go for a second term, because it would be a "contradiction", but a diehard support of the President, David Kortie, says opposition politicians including Tubman are "afraid" of the "Iron Lady".

"They know that she will beat them flat. They are all small boys and they are very afraid of the woman," Mr. Kortie said in a recent radio interview.

Meanwhile, addressing the joint session of the National Legislature Monday, President Sirleaf noted that her government has made progress, but more needed to be done in the rebuilding of the country.

Touching on the state of the economy, President Sirleaf said the government has reduced inherited external debt arrears, which were unprecedented across the globe when compared to our national wealth, from US$4.9 billion to US$1.7 billion and we expect the bulk of this remaining debt will be forgiven when we reach the HIPC Completion Point at mid-year.

This, she said, includes the buy-back of all but a small amount of commercial debt of US$1.6 billion at 3 cents on the dollar. We have, in short, escaped the economic burden of our past, and freed ourselves for a better future. In short, though still riddled with the economic and other burdens of the past, we are coping effectively and laying a sound foundation for a better future.

"Our budget has increased from the US$80 million when I took office, to over US$370 million, and we have maintained the fiscal discipline of a cash-based expenditure regime. Budgets and fiscal reports and procurement contracts are made available for public review and discussion," the President said.

She said the net foreign reserves position of the Central Bank of Liberia at end-December 2009 was US$226 million, compared with US$49.4 million at end of 2008, reflecting in part the allocation of Special Drawing Rights (SDR) by the International Monetary Fund.

When this Government came to power, the Central Bank's reserves stood at around US$5 million, but the president said "We now have banking services in nine counties and will continue on this path until all of our counties have access to banking services. Inflation has been kept under control to an average annual 9.7 percent and exchange rate depreciation at 7.1 percent a level comparable to our regional neighbors."

New investment, she disclosed, valued at over US$10 billion will provide the basis for operations in mining, agriculture, and forestry. This includes reactivation of the Yekepa and Bong Mining operations in Nimba and Bong Counties and the Guthrie and Cavalla agricultural operations in Bomi and Maryland Counties. Similar operations will touch every County within the next two years.

Speaking on the contentious TRC report, Presiddnt Sirleaf said while one may not agree with all of the findings and recommendations resulting from the report, there is no doubt that it dissects and analyzes our problems and makes meaningful recommendations for the healing, reconciliation, restoration, peace, prosperity and progress of our nation.

"It is therefore important that we carefully digest the Report and make a conscious national determination to move ahead cautiously and strategically in the implementation of the recommendations, she stated.

"One thing must be made clear, however, as we strive to understand the contents and objectives of the Report. Like you, I took an oath to defend, protect and uphold the Constitution and laws of the Republic of Liberia. It is therefore incumbent upon us all to uphold that oath," she told the lawmakers.

She said she recognized that the TRC Report makes several generalized recommendations, to include: (i) Extraordinary Criminal Tribunal; (ii) Domestic Criminal Sanctions; (iii) Public Sanctions; (iv) National "Palaver Hut" Programs; (v) Economic Crimes Investigations and Prosecutions; (vi) Reparation; (vii) and others.

"I welcome the recommendations on national "Palaver Hut" programs and reparation as true measures for reconciliation and I am committed to working with your Honorable Body to determine the processes and identify the resources for their implementation. I suggest that we start this process immediately.

"I also welcome the recommendations regarding the Liberian Diaspora which appear to be feasible and do not infringe on any constitutional right of the individual, that Liberians, their relatives and offspring who migrated to foreign parts on account of the civil crisis or who migrated to foreign parts prior to the civil war but remained in foreign parts on account of the civil crisis and in other instances had to acquire foreign nationalities should benefit from dispensation of maintaining their foreign nationalities without forfeiting their Liberian citizenship. I am prepared to work with you, Honorable Legislators, to give these citizens the opportunity to live in and work for their country once again," President Sirleaf noted.

The President said she has been leader for the last four years and noted that there would be more challenges for the nest two years of her administration.

She however pledged government's commitment to "build more roads and bridges; to connect areas that have been deprived of such facilities; to strengthen our education and health systems; to get more of our children in schools; to improve the quality of schools to that of other West African countries; to prioritize throughout the country agriculture so that we can feed ourselves and produce the surplus for export; to increase the salaries of civil servants, of teachers and nurses, of security personnel and pensioners; to solve the serious sanitation problem in our Capital City making Monrovia a city of which we can be proud".